Main purpose of job:

The UK government has radically expanded its presence in Africa. This role offers applicants the opportunity to help shape this new, long-term UK partnership for prosperity and stability with Africa.

You will join the Department for International Trade’s (DIT) Africa network. This is an exciting time to join, as we expand our resources and ambition to deliver on the objectives set out by the UK government. This role will provide crucial leadership and expertise to enable the expansion and help the UK Government deliver its sustainable development and poverty reduction objectives in Africa through the reduction of market access barriers.

Ghana is one of the largest economies within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The UK is already one of Ghana’s top trading partners and sources of investments. Ghana is the UK’s fifth largest export destination in Sub-Saharan Africa.

DIT work at post is closely integrated with other departments, working as part of the EDIT (Economic Development, Trade & Investment) virtual team with Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) colleagues. The work of EDIT drives forward our economic partnership with Ghana, which is focused on six key sectors (agro-processing, extractives, digital, pharma, financial services and garments/textiles) and three overarching themes (ease of doing business, infrastructure and revenue mobilisation). You will feed in expert opinion to the development and implementation of action plans in each area, and help to maximise their impact. Every six months, you will work with EDIT to organise the UK-Ghana Business Council, a high-level ministerial meeting designed to accelerate progress on economic development, trade & investment and job creation.

This role will work to increase the overall value of UK trade and investment to Ghana by tackling market access barriers faced by business seeking to access or expand in the Ghanaian market. You will report to the DIT Deputy Country Director, with support from the trade policy/agreement lead and sector leads in country and in London. You will assist cross government efforts to position the UK as Ghana’s partner of choice as it seeks to “move beyond aid”, in part by increasing trade and investment and thereby contributing to sustainable development and poverty reduction. The latter being your primary objective in a post which is funded by Official Development Assistance (ODA).

We are looking for someone with a business background, not necessarily in trade, who is proactive, can work autonomously, and build strong networks, all while being delivery focused.

Roles & Responsibilities:

1. Outreach to exporters, importers and investors to monitor and identify the challenges faced by companies trying to access the Ghanaian market (e.g. local content requirements, customs clearance procedures, intellectual property issues, etc). This should include a creation of networks with UK business exporting (or looking to export) to Ghana and Ghanaian business exporting (or looking to export) to the UK.
2. Prioritise barriers and devise delivery plans to overcome them through a mixture of different instruments (lobbying, technical assistance, high level interventions, etc). This will in part be done by working with colleagues in DIT, and the FCDO to identify and address market access barriers, before developing and managing the UK Government’s response to these above challenges. It will also include needing to understand the scale and impact of those barriers, especially from an inclusive growth and sustainable development perspective (as well as specific commercial opportunities identified by DIT) and understand the Government of Ghana’s motivations for introducing them, and the estimated success-rate of removal.
3. Lead the Market Access Working Group, a newly created government to government business environment working group, working closely with the DIT Market Access colleagues and analysts in London to aid the resolution of an agreed set of priority area barriers to increase UK-Ghana trade.
4. Develop networks with key partners to get a deeper understanding of Ghana’s regulatory bodies having a bearing on trade and investment. Partners will include:

• Relevant government ministries
• Ghanaian businesses and international firms operating in Ghana
• Academic institutions
• NGOs
• Business organisations.

Resources managed:

Budget responsibility to be confirmed.

• Undergraduate degree in business, economics, commercial law, or related fields.
• At least two years professional work experience – preferably in the private sector, and/or with exposure to policymaking.
• Proven analytical skills, ability to understand and communicate complex policy issues effectively to non-specialist audiences.
• A proactive attitude, ready to develop networks and relationships with business and government
• Excellent collaboration skills, including the ability to work with colleagues in business and in other departments.